We posted a while back that O2 would be launching their 4G LTE network in the UK at the end of August, but the company has now reveled its full list of 4G options plus added extras. Although O2 4G will initially launch in London - with other cities to follow - the number of BlackBerry 10 users that take advantage of their LTE may well be limited, but at least EE will now have some competition in the 4G market.

O2 currently sell the BlackBerry Z10 and Q10 - both which are 4G ready, so if you are already with the network you will be able to take advantage of the faster LTE speeds when coverage reaches you.

At last the UK is catching up with other countries where 4G has been around for ages. Will there now be a 4G price war to attract customers? Only time will tell.

Sound off in the comments with your thoughts.

Press Release

From 29th August, O2 will offer 4G tariffs starting at just £26 a month, which all come with unlimited minutes and texts, bigger data bundles from 1GB – 8GB, free access to 9,000 O2 Wifi hotspots, Priority Moments and a range of exclusive content.

Bigger Data Bundles:
O2’s 4G SIM only packages start at £26 for 1GB of data and go up to £36 a month for 5GB of data. If customers need additional data, they will be contacted about bolt-ons, which will be available at £6 for 500MB and £10 for 1GB.
Customers who also want to choose a new device have a range of options through O2 Refresh, which uniquely gives O2 customers the flexibility to get the latest device whenever they want. Airtime plans for O2 Refresh start from £22 a month for 1GB of data, and go up to £37 for 8GB. Customers have the flexibility to choose a 4G device at a price per month that suits them. The monthly device payment will range from £10 to £25, dependent on how a customer choses to pay for one of over 10 4G-ready devices in O2’s range.

O2 4G Pay&Go and mobile broadband tariffs will launch before the end of the year, with more details coming soon.

Recognising the ever-growing use of data, O2 is giving all O2 4G customers a minimum of 1GB of data as standard in their tariff. Until 31st October, and to celebrate the launch of 4G, O2 is offering additional value on its most popular SIM only and airtime tariffs, for the duration of the contract, so customers can truly enjoy the benefits of 4G – 5GB from £27 a month (3GB as standard) and 8GB from £32 a month (5GB as standard).

Exclusive Content:
4G will bring a more seamless mobile experience, allowing customers to enjoy brilliant entertainment on the move. Faster data speeds and better coverage will mean O2 customers can enjoy an even better experience when watching sport and video on the go, using popular streaming services such as Sky Go, BBC iPlayer and NetFlix.
Any O2 customer who signs up to 4G with O2 will get exclusive access to a range of music, sport and gaming content:

Music: O2 4G customers will have access to the most popular music tracks and videos in the UK through O2 4G Tracks – completely free for the first 12 months when they sign up to 4G direct with O2. O2 Tracks features the Official UK Top 40 Singles Chart and a unique collection of playlists and videos, handpicked by artists. O2 has supercharged O2 Tracks by adding a music video service, which streams the hottest music videos direct to your device, so customers can now watch the latest music videos in high quality on the go.

Sport: O2 customers will have access to free and exclusive Priority Sports videos on the move, including weekly content from sporting heroes offering training advice, fitness and nutrition tips, interviews and top music playlists to work out to. Priority Sports, supercharged by O2 4G, will bring behind the scenes action from world-class teams, events and venues including O2′s England Rugby sponsorship, Twickenham Stadium and NBA Live at The O2. The O2 Priority App is available to download by texting SPORTS to 2020.

Gaming: O2 4G customers will get exclusive access to some of the latest and greatest multiplayer games to play seamlessly on the move. An exclusive deal with Gameloft will allow O2 customers to play leading titles including Asphalt 8: Airborne, Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour and Zombiewood over 4G. O2 customers will be able to play these games without eating into their data allowance.

Brian Rose, MD Commercial, Universal Music, said: “O2 Tracks has already proved itself as a compelling music service for music fans who want ease of access to the biggest hits on the move. O2’s forthcoming 4G music video service is even more distinctive and we are excited to be working with O2 as they expand their music offering.”

Ian Ritchie, CEO of the RFU, said: “One of the reasons O2 is our longest standing sponsorship partner is that they continue to innovate as a brand. Earlier this year O2 brought us the O2 Matchday app, featuring Ref!Link, which brought rugby fans closer to the action. It is fantastic to be working alongside O2 as they launch 4G to take sport to the next level.”

David Whitby, Country Manager UK & Ireland at Gameloft, said: “We’re thrilled to be working with O2 to bring multiplayer gaming on-the-go to O2′s 4G customers. We’ll know they’ll love being able to race supercars through the streets of London with their friends – even while stuck in traffic on a bus.”

Speed to 4G:
Existing O2 customers with a 4G ready device can transfer to a 4G tariff without needing to sign a new agreement.
Existing O2 customers who do not have a 4G enabled phone, including iPhone5, are also able to get their hands on 4G as soon as they want. O2’s unique ‘4G Phone Promise’ and ‘Speed to 4G’ will see O2 pay 25% towards customers’ remaining contracts, allowing them to sign up to 4G more easily. By trading in an old device with O2 Recycle, customers can get up to £300 to help pay off the remainder of their existing contract, or put it towards their next 4G ready device.
Those customers who move to an O2 4G Refresh tariff will have the benefit of being able to get the latest device, whenever they want.
To allow as many people as possible to experience and enjoy the benefits of 4G, O2 has introduced a 90 day Happiness Guarantee for O2 4G customers. If a customer decides 4G isn’t for them, O2 will transfer them back to an equivalent 3G tariff with a bill credit of up to £15.

Business Tariffs:
O2 is offering its business customers a range of tariffs to support smartphones, tablets, mobile broadband and Pop Up Office (mobile wifi).
O2’s 4G SIM only packages for small businesses start at £21.67 for 1GB of data on a 12 month contract. Until 31st October, O2 is building in additional data into its most popular small business SIM only 4G tariffs – 5GB for £25.84 a month (3GB as standard) and 8GB for £30 a month (5GB as standard) – all exc VAT.
Smartphone On & On tariffs for small business customers start at £26.67 for 1GB of data on a 24 month contract. Until 31st October, O2 is building in additional data into its most popular small business On & On 4G tariffs – 5GB for £30.84 a month (3GB as standard) and 8GB for £35 a month (5GB as standard).
Mobile broadband, tablets and data-only tariffs will be available from £14.17 a month, while O2’s Pop Up Office (mobile wifi) starts at the same price, and will be available from mid-September. Until 31st October, O2 is building in additional data into its 5GB mobile broadband, tablet and Pop Up Office tariffs – 8GB for £20.83 a month (5GB as standard). The O2 Lease portfolio will also be extended to include 4G ready devices, to allow small business customers to minimise the upfront costs of their device on a 12 month contract.

Cloud and digital office applications and services powered by 4G will enable O2 business customers to be more collaborative, more efficient and more productive, including the recently launched Microsoft Office 365. O2’s 4G unique 90 Day Happiness Guarantee is also available for Business customers on standard tariffs. O2’s free Wifi is also available to all business customers.

EE have recently upped their data bundles, I started on the 1gb tariff but after calling customers service I now get 10GB for £41 per month which includes a 10% loyalty discount as switched from Orange. You gotta push them for it though to get the new data allowance.

If im correct Voda and O2 are going to share Masts like Orange and T mobile do now,so if you dont get a good signal on one network O2 eg then you should be ok if the other is a Voda near you.Where i live out in the sticks i can see 4G taking a few years to get where i am ,but if they are running on 800 hertz which travels further distance than EE frequency which is higher might be able to get it earlier,But at present i dont need 4G doubt if i ever will.

I'm angry at some of these prices because when I had updated back in Jan for Z10 I only got 1GB of date and had to pay 200quid for phone which my tariff costs 37quid a month...feel ripped off when I look at the data available now for cheaper and free phone...grown tired of O2 and there is nothing I can do now that i'm stuck with about 18months left on contract :-/

As long as it gets to Highland Scotland before I get my pension...which I doubt. Where I live and work doesn't even have 2G yet...never mind 3G. When will the multi corporate folks realise that we, too, need to communicate with others...??

O2 did say when I contacted them that if you have a Z10, you'll be able to swap to a 4G tariff from 29 August without having to restart your contract. I'm guessing prices will put them about the same for 4G as they are currently for 3G.

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